Various types of sheet product dispensers are known in the art, including mechanical and automated dispensers configured to dispense sheet product from a roll of sheet product that is rotatably supported by the dispenser. Paper towels, bath tissue, facial tissue, napkins, wipes, and other types of sheet product may be provided in roll form for dispensing from a sheet product dispenser. A roll of sheet product generally may include a web of sheet product that is wrapped around a longitudinal axis such that numerous layers of the sheet product are wound around one another. In this manner, sheet product may be dispensed by manually or automatically rotating the roll to unwind a portion of the sheet product from the roll and then separating the portion from a remainder of the roll for use. The roll of sheet product may include a central opening extending therethrough along the longitudinal axis of the roll. Certain rolls of sheet product may be coreless, such that the central opening of the roll is defined by an inner layer of the sheet product. Other rolls of sheet product may be cored, such that the central opening of the roll is defined by a core of paperboard or other material around which the layers of the sheet product are wound.
According to various sheet product dispenser configurations, the central opening of a roll of sheet product may be used to rotatably support the roll with respect to the sheet product dispenser. For example, certain sheet product dispensers may include a spindle or other type of support that extends through the entire length of the central opening and allows the roll of sheet product to rotate with respect to the sheet product dispenser. Other sheet product dispensers may be configured to support a roll of sheet product via one or more core plugs which are partially inserted into the central opening and allow the roll to rotate with respect to the sheet product dispenser. For example, a pair of separate core plugs may be used, with a first core plug partially inserted into the central opening at a first end of the roll and a second core plug partially inserted into the central opening at an opposite second end of the roll. The core plugs may be inserted into the central opening by a manufacturer after forming the roll of sheet product or may be inserted by an end user prior to loading the roll into a sheet product dispenser. Exposed portions of the core plugs (i.e., portions of the core plugs that extend outward from the ends of the roll of sheet product and are not positioned within the central opening) may be engaged and supported by one or more support features of the sheet product dispenser such that the roll may rotate with respect to the dispenser about a rotational axis for dispensing sheet product therefrom. Such support features may include one or more slots, channels, apertures, or other suitable receptacles configured to receive and support the exposed portions of the core plugs.
Certain sheet product dispensers may be configured to support only a single roll of sheet product at a time. Such single-roll dispensers may include a pair of support features, such as slots, channels, apertures, or other suitable receptacles configured to respectively receive and support a pair of core plugs inserted into the central aperture of a roll loaded in the dispenser. Other sheet product dispensers may be configured to support multiple rolls of sheet product at a time. Some multi-roll dispensers may include multiple pairs of support features, such as slots, channels, apertures, or other suitable receptacles, with each pair of support features configured to receive and support a respective pair of core plugs inserted into the central aperture of one of multiple rolls loaded in the dispenser. For example, this type of configuration may be used in a carousel style dispenser that allows sheet product to be dispensed only from a first roll located in a dispensing position and then allows the carousel to rotate a second roll into the dispensing position upon depletion of the first roll. Other multi-roll dispensers may include a single pair of support features, such as slots, channels, apertures, or other suitable receptacles configured to receive and support multiple pairs of core plugs inserted into the respective central apertures of multiple rolls loaded in the dispenser. For example, this type of configuration may be used in a stacked style dispenser that allows sheet product to be dispensed only from a first roll located in a dispensing position and then allows a second roll to slide or otherwise move into the dispensing position upon depletion of the first roll. Still other support feature configurations may be used in other sheet product dispensers to engage and support core plugs inserted into the central apertures of rolls of sheet product.
Existing core plugs generally may be formed as rigid or substantially rigid structures, a portion of which is intended to be inserted into the central opening of a roll of sheet product while an exposed portion of the core plug extends outward from the respective end of the roll. For example, such core plugs may be molded or otherwise formed from a hard plastic material and may be dimensioned and shaped such that the core plug is substantially inflexible and incompressible. As a result, such core plugs may have a fixed, non-adjustable axial length.
Although existing core plugs may provide a suitable connection between a roll of sheet product and respective support features of a sheet product dispenser in certain applications, use of such core plugs may present certain problems. Importantly, variations in the axial length of rolls of sheet product may exist from one roll to another roll, due to manufacturing tolerance ranges, process changes, or other reasons. Such variations may result in variations in the axial distance at which distal ends of a pair of core plugs are spaced apart from one another when properly inserted into the central aperture of a roll, which may affect engagement between the core plugs and respective support features of a dispenser. Additionally, variations in the distance between a pair of opposing support features of a dispenser may exist from one dispenser to another dispenser, due to manufacturing tolerance ranges, wear from continued use, or other reasons. Such variations may result in variations in the axial distance at which distal ends of a pair of core plugs need to be spaced apart from one another in order for the core plugs to properly engage the support features. Furthermore, variations in the axial distances along which a pair of core plugs are respectively inserted into the central opening of a roll may exist from one roll-and-core-plug assembly to another roll-and-core-plug assembly, due to manufacturing tolerance ranges (when the core plugs are inserted by a manufacturer), user error (when the core plugs are inserted by an end user), or other reasons. Such variations may result in variations in the axial distance at which distal ends of a pair of core plugs are spaced apart from one another when improperly inserted into the central aperture of a roll, which may affect engagement between the core plugs and respective support features of a dispenser. Ultimately, these types of variations, alone or in combination, may result in less engagement than desired between the core plugs and the respective support features of the dispenser. Such under-engagement may allow undesirable axial movement of the roll relative to the dispenser and, in some circumstances, may allow the roll to fall out of the dispenser, resulting in user frustration and poor user perception of the dispenser. Alternatively, these types of variations may result in more engagement than desired between the core plugs and the respective support features of the dispenser. Such over-engagement may undesirably restrict or even prevent rotation of the roll relative to the dispenser, resulting in user frustration and poor user perception of the dispenser. Finally, when existing core plugs are inserted into the central openings of rolls of sheet product by a manufacturer, the rigid core plugs may puncture or otherwise damage certain types of packaging or may themselves be damaged by certain types of packaging during shipment or handling.
There is thus a desire for improved core plugs for supporting a roll of sheet product with respect to a sheet product dispenser. Such core plugs should accommodate variations in the axial length of rolls of sheet product, variations in the distance between a pair of opposing support features of a dispenser, and/or variations in the axial distances along which the core plugs are inserted into the central opening of a roll, while also reducing incidence of under-engagement and over-engagement between the core plugs and respective support features of a dispenser. Additionally, such core plugs should reduce the likelihood of damage to packaging and/or the core plugs during shipment or handling of a roll-and-core-plug assembly.